The Daring Cook's June 2012: Cannelloni

So excited about this month's Daring Cooks' challenge...why you may ask...well just because I made bacon for the first time and I wanted to include it in another recipe. And this month's challenge was perfect! I bought around 1.5 kg of pork belly skin on and followed this recipe. Manu from Manu's Menu was our Daring Cooks lovely June hostess and has challenged us to make traditional Italian cannelloni from scratch! We were taught how to make the pasta, filling, and sauces shared with us from her own and her family's treasured recipes!

EGG PASTA

100 grams (2/3 cups + 2 teaspoons) All-purpose Flour

1 large Egg

Directions:

1. Put the flour and egg in a food processor and mix. When the dough looks like crumbs pour it onto the bench top sprinkled with a little flour. Knead well by hand until you obtain a smooth dough. Make it into a ball, wrap it in cling wrap and let rest for 10-15 minutes.

2. Now you are ready to make your egg pasta. Cut out a piece of egg pasta flatten it into a rectangular shape with your hands. Put a little flour on it and begin passing it through a pasta machine. Turn the dial to the widest setting (#1) and starting with one of the shorter sides of the rectangle, feed it through the rollers. Now fold one side of the piece of dough into the middle then fold the other side over to make 3 layers. Starting with one of the narrower sides of the dough feed the pasta again at the widest setting. Repeat the folding and and rolling technique on the widest setting for at least a couple of times.

3. Now you can start rolling it thinner by turning the dial to the next narrowest setting (#2). Roll the pasta through the machine without folding the dough between settings. Keep reducing the settings until #7. If the sheet of pasta gets too long, you can cut it in half with a knife. To make cannelloni cut out rectangular pasta sheets (10x15cm) or (4"x6").

*You can do this without a pasta machine, just roll the sheets thinly with a rolling pin and cut into rectangles.

BECHAMEL SAUCE

2 cups (500 ml) Milk, hot

3 1/2 Tablespoons (50 grams) Butter

1/3 cup (50 grams) All-purpose Flour

1 pinch salt

1 pinch nutmeg

Directions:

1. Put the butter in a non-stick pot and let it melt. Add the flour and whisk constantly until well incorporated: this is the "roux" let it cook for a minute or two.

2. Now start adding hot milk little by little, while mixing continuously until milk is well incorporated. Do not add more milk unless it is well incorporated, keep doing so until all the milk is incorporated.

3. Add salt and nutmeg and cook it on low flame for 10 minutes until it thickens.
I got Manu's recipes for the egg pasta and the bechamel but I made my own tomato sauce by sauteeing 2 finely chopped cloves of garlic, 1 minced red onion, 1/2 teaspoon of dried rosemary and 200 grams of whole peeled tomatoes (canned) for about 15 minutes. I seasoned it with a bit of salt and pepper. Then I filled my cannelloni with chopped bacon and mushrooms, rolled them and covered with bechamel and the tomato sauce and sliced mozzarella cheese and baked it in a preheated 350 degrees farenheit oven for 20 minutes.

And there you have it, Cannelloni from scratch! Thank you Manu for this month's Daring Cook's challenge, it was fun to make and delicious!

Please visit the other Daring Cooks and check out all the delicious varieties of Cannelloni that each one came up with, you won't be disappointed.

Lechon Paksiw

So summer is officially over...here in the Philippines. But thankfully the rainy season has been kind...no flooding yet.

We took advantage of the last days of summer and visited a farm in Bulacan which is about 2 hours or so away from the capital. There was no traffic along the North Expressway, the sun was shining brightly and this was what greeted us...

Don't you just love the green green grass and plants and the blue sky?

This was my favorite part of the farm. the raised vegetable beds and the greenhouse a.k.a. baby plant nursery

Lest you think that this is just a vegetable farm, there were also goats, a few sheep, lots of chickens, some geese and of course native pigs. The people who run the farm are running it without pesticides, herbicides and artificial stuff...in short, this is an organic farm. They use vermiculture (African night crawler worms) to fertilize the plants, they also do a lot of composting etc.

One of the people there told me we were going to roast a pig, not an ordinary pig but an organic native pig (they're black in color, have less fat and are generally thought of to taste better than normal pigs). So there I was, taking all these pictures while they were preparing the pig. They butchered it before we arrived so they were just cleaning it when I got there. The Filipino way of roasting a whole pig is on a spit over hot coals. The sun was shining and it was so hot but I wasn't going to miss any of it. They used an electric fan to get the flames going (literally "fanning" the flames). While this was going on, the pig was cleaned and stuffed with native bananas we call saba, crushed garlic, lemon grass and spring onions. While it was roasting they were basting it with a mixture of patis (fish sauce), Sprite (yes the soda) and soy sauce. It took about 2 hours for the pig to be fully cooked, and it was so worth the wait!

Roasting a pig the Filipino way

I went home not only with a full stomach but also with a goody bag of freshly roasted native pig! When they asked me if I wanted to bring home some of the left-overs of course I said yes...I already had something in mind for it.

I really love roasted pig or as we call it Lechon Baboy but actually, I love cooking it as Paksiw na Lechon the next day, it just gets better and better.

The traditional accompaniment or sauce of Lechon is called Sarsa, made of pig's liver, spices, breadcrumbs etc. But nowadays we just buy the bottled Mang Tomas Lechon Sarsa which is available in supermarkets. But we didn't use any lechon sarsa for the Lechon Baboy, it was that good...no need for sauces, the taste was just perfect!

I used the Lechon Sarsa for the Paksiw na Lechon...so here is my recipe for one of my favorite dishes.
LECHON PAKSIW

1.5 kilos cooked Lechon meat

1 cup Mang Tomas Lechon Sarsa

10 cloves of Garlic, peeled and smashed

2 Bay leaves, dried

1 teaspoon Black Peppercorn

1/2 cup Cane Vinegar

1/4 cup Brown Sugar

Salt and Pepper, to taste

Directions:
Cut the lechon into 2-inch cubes. Put all ingredients in a pot and cover with enough liquid (water or stock) to submerge the meat, let mixture boil without stirring. When it is boiling, stir and turn down the heat, simmer until the sauce thickens.

Serve hot with rice :)

And there it is...the Paksiw na Lechon...one of my favorite dishes!

THE DARING BAKERS' MAY 2012 CHALLENGE: Challah Back, Y'all!

Posting late for the May Daring Bakers' Challenge:  GUILTY, but I really didn't want to sit this one out just because it was hosted by Ruth of The Crafts of Mommyhood.  So here's my late post.

May’s Daring Bakers’ Challenge was pretty twisted – Ruth from The Crafts of Mommyhood challenged us to make challah! Using recipes from all over, and tips from “A Taste of Challah,” by Tamar Ansh, she encouraged us to bake beautifully braided breads.

A brief historical introduction:
Challah is a bread of celebration in Jewish tradition. At a time when white flour was considered a luxury, its use was reserved for either the wealthy or for festive events. In Judaism, the Sabbath is a weekly holiday, and therefore is a festive occasion. It was around the 15th century when Jews in parts of Austria and Germany adopted an oval braided loaf from their neighbors to make the Sabbath special. These fancy shaped loaves made with white flour were seen as a fitting way to honor the Shabbat (Sabbath), symbolized in Jewish culture as a queen, therefore deserving of the finest one can achieve. In honoring the Sabbath as a day of rest, two loaves are traditionally put on the table. This is generally seen as a representation of the double portion of manna provided to the Children of Israel on Fridays during their wandering in the desert after fleeing from Egypt. This double portion allowed them to maintain the commandment to not do “work” on the Sabbath.

Another symbolic comparison to the manna eaten by the Israelites is the fact that challah is traditionally covered with a cloth prior to being blessed and eaten. According to tradition, manna was encased in dew to preserve its freshness. Covering the challah with a decorative cloth serves as another reminder of the special quality of the day of rest. There are other explanations given regarding why the challah is covered. The one which I always liked was that we cover the loaves so they will not be “embarrassed” by having to wait while the wine is blessed first. (A traditional Sabbath dinner begins with a blessing over the wine first, followed by the blessing of the bread, after which the meal is enjoyed.)

Easy Challah (from templedavid.org)

Ingredients
4 cups (960 ml) (360 gm/20 oz) all-purpose (plain) flour
1 cup (240 ml) warm water
1 package (2¼ teaspoons) (11¼ ml) (7 gm) (¼ oz) package rapid rise yeast
½ (120 ml) (115 gm/4 oz) cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. (5 ml) (6 gm) salt
1 egg beaten with 1 tsp. water
Directions:
1. Measure flour, sugar and salt into a large mixing bowl.
2. In a separate bowl (or in the bowl of your stand mixer) combine water and yeast, allow to sit 5 minutes until foamy.
3. Add 1 ½ cups of the flour mixture to the water and yeast mixture, beat until well combined. Cover with a dish towel, let stand 30 min.
4. Add two eggs to the dough, beat again.
5. By hand or with your dough hook knead in the remaining flour mixture. Knead approximately 10 minutes.
6. Transfer to oiled bowl, cover, let rise one hour.
7. Punch down dough, knead approximately 3 minutes.
8. Divide dough in two. Shape each half as desired (3, 4, or 6 strand braid).
9. Place loaves on parchment covered or greased cookie sheets, cover with a towel, allow to rise one hour.
10. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
11. Brush loaves with egg wash.
12. Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 degrees, bake until golden crust forms (about 25-30 minutes).
13. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

Thank you for this challenge Ruth, I really enjoyed making Challah and I will make it again using the other 2 recipes you gave!

Do check out the amazing Challah bread that all the other Daring Bakers have come up with.  

The Daring Cook's May 2012:Messieurs-Dames: Boeuf Bourguignon!

Our May 2012 Daring Cooks' hostess was Fabi of fabsfood. Fabi challenged us to make Boeuf Bourguignon, a classic French stew originating from the Burgundy region of France.

I couldn't believe the timeliness of this month's challenge...I've been spending two month's worth of Saturdays taking up French at Alliance Francaise de Manille. So it was really a nice surprise when I read what this month's challenge was going to be and aside from that our hostess Fabi got the recipe from one of my favorites...Julia Child!

We were given the option of making a vegetarian version using tofu which I really wanted to make but didn't have enough time for. So I just went ahead and made the traditional beef version.

BOEUF BOURGUIGNON

200 grams Streaky Bacon

Olive Oil

1.3 kilos Stewing Beef cut into 2-in cubes

1 teaspoon Salt

1/2 teaspoon Pepper

3 Tablespoons Flour

720 ml of young Red Wine (Bourgogne of course but Bourdeaux, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chianti, Rioja etc.)

1 Carrot, sliced

1 Onions, sliced in julienne (strips)

355 to 475 ml Beef Stock

1 tablespoon Tomato paste or puree

2 cloves mashed garlic

1/2 teaspoon Thyme leaves

1 Bay leave

The blanched bacon rind

18-24 small onions, brown-braised in stock

1/2 kg mushrooms sauteed in butter (Champignons are perfect for this purpose)

Fresh parsley sprigs to serve

DIRECTIONS:

1.Prepare the bacon, remove the rind. Cut the bacon into lardons (sticks 1/4 inch thick and 1/2 inch long)and simmer everything in 4 cups of water for 10 minutes. Drain and dry carefully with paper towels.

2.Dry the meat cubes carefully with paper towels.
3. Preheat oven to 450 degrees farenheit.

4. In a fire-proof casserole or a frying pan, saute the lardons in a tablespoon of olive oil for 2-3 minutes until they're lightly brown. Remove them to a side dish with a slotted spoon.

5. In the same pan, saute the beef until its golden brown. Remove it to the side dish where you keep the bacon and set aside.

6. Still in the same pan, saute the carrots and the onions.

7. Return the bacon and the beef to the pan sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add flour and toss.

8. Place the casserole/pan uncovered in the middle position of the oven for 4 minutes. This gives the meat a lovely crust.

9. Remove the casserole from the oven. Stir in the wine, stock, tomato paste, mashed garlic, cloves, thyme, bay and the blanched bacon rind.

10. Bring it to simmering point on the stove. If you are using a frying pan, discard it and put the stew in an oven-proof dish.

11. Cover the casserole (if it doesn't have a lid, use aluminum foil, and stretch it to the edges of the dish in order to minimize the loss of juices) and place it low in the oven. Adjust the heat so that the liquid simmers very slowly, it has to go on for 3-4 hours.

12. While the stew is cooking, prepare onions and mushrooms. For the onions melt 1 tablespoon butter in a frying pan and saute the peeled onions until golden brown. Add beef stock until they're almost covered and simmer for 20-25 minutes, or until almost all the liquid disappears and they're tender but keep their shape. Set aside.

13. Prepare the mushrooms as well: Wash, quarter and saute them in 2tablespoons butter. Keep in stirring until they're nicely browned. Set aside.

14. When the meat is tender put the stew into a sieve over a saucepan. Wash out the casserole and return the stew to it. Put onions and mushrooms over the meat.

15.Skim the fat off the sauce. Put the saucepan on the stove and simmer it for 2-3 minutes. Skim additional fat if it rises. The sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon. If not boil it until it thickens.

*I cheated on this recipe by pressure-cooking the beef for 30 minutes. Then I did the rest of the procedures.

And there you have it...the final result of a hurried version...it still tasted pretty good, even if I didn't cook it for the traditional 5 hours.
I had to take the pictures as fast as I could because a certain cat number 2 a.k.a. Hopster was eyeing the plate.
Thank you Fabi for such a fab (sorry couldn't resist that) challenge this month! Oh and please don't forget to check out the other versions of Boeuf Bourguignon that my fellow Daring Cooks have come up with.

Breakfast Juicing

This is my recipe for breakfast to help me accomplish the tasks of a very busy, very taxing day...
I made up my own juice with some of my favorite fruits and vegetables...it has to be that way because I drink this every morning...every single day :)

But once in a while...like on Saturdays...I can't resist a slice or two of Bibingka!

The Daring Cooks' April 2012 Challenge - Create Your Own Recipe!

Our April 2012 hosts were David and Karen of Twenty-Fingered Cooking. They presented us with a very daring and unique challenge of forming our own recipes by using a set list of ingredients.

I really like it when we are asked to come up with our own recipes because it brings out everyone's creativity. So what is the list of these ingredients that we can play around? They gave us 3 sets and we had to choose one from each list:

1. Parsnips, Eggplant (Aubergine), Cauliflower

2. Balsamic Vinegar, Goat Cheese, Chipotle Peppers

3. Maple Syrup, Instant Coffee, Bananas

Along with the list, they also provided some recipes but I decided to completely come up with my own. I chose Eggplant because I haven't seen parsnips around here in Manila, and no I don't really like cauliflowers so eggplant it is. I also have balsamic vinegar and maple syrup in the cupboard so I just came up with a dish utilizing those three: Eggplant, Balsamic Vinegar and Eggplants.

Being the true Filipino that I am...when vinegar is listed as an ingredient--I always think of Adobo. So that is what I decided to cook. Adobo is a dish that is cooked with vinegar and/or soy sauce and garlic. There are as many versions of this as there are many cooks in the Philippines. I was going to make my own version based on my 3 ingredients.
ADOBONG BAKA
1 kilo Beef Cubes (cooked in the pressure cooker the night before)
1/4 cup Balsamic Vinegar
2 tablespoons Soy Sauce
10 cloves Garlic, peeled and smashed with the flat side of a knife
2 pieces Bay leaves (dried)
1 teaspoon Black Peppercorn
Salt and Pepper to taste
1/4 cup Maple syrup
Combine beef cubes, garlic, peppercorn, balsamic vinegar, soysauce and enough water or stock to cover everything in a pot. Cook over medium heat for 30 minutes (this process is shorter because the meat was already cooked in the pressure cooker). Do not stir until boiling or the vinegar will taste raw. When mixture is boiling turn down the heat and season with salt, pepper and maple syrup. Cook for another 10 minutes. Serve hot with steamed rice.

Okay, so what about the eggplant? I cut it into rings, salted and rinsed. Grilled with olive oil (no need to season with salt, they might come out too salty).

And there it is...Adobong Baka with Grilled Eggplants. Thank you David and Karen, this was a wonderful challenge!

Bagoong Alamang at Mangga

I didn't realize how easy it was to make Bagoong Alamang. I have a friend who grew up in Navotas, a seaside community here in Manila and they used to make their own Bagoong Alamang, she was the one who told me how to make it. For the uninitiated, Bagoong Alamang is shrimp paste made from very small shrimps that are fermented and then sauteed with additional ingredients (onions, garlic, etc). I was supposed to make it from scratch but all I had available was pre-fermented alamang... BAGOONG ALAMANG

500 grams Alamang (fermented)

1 piece Red Onion (peeled and minced)

3 cloves Garlic (peeled, smashed and minced finely)

2 pieces Chili (minced)

2 tablespoons Oil (I used the solidified fat from the braised pork belly)

200 grams Pork belly (roasted in oven for 4 hours, cut small dice)

1/4 cup Cane Vinegar

1/2 cup Brown Sugar

Sautee minced onions, garlic and chili in oil until fragrant. Add the diced pork and the Alamang. Pour in the vinegar and let mixture come to a boil. Add the brown sugar and mix well. Cook this mixture until the liquid has almost completely evaporated. Adjust the sugar as needed.

Cool and store in jars in the refrigerator.

Just as I was taking the picture...Hipster the cat decided to make an appearance to check out the delicious fishy smell coming from the bowl.

Bagoong Alamang can be used in many different ways. It can be a dipping sauce for Kare-Kare, or used in Binaggoongan. But my favorite way of using it is on Green Mangoes...yummmmmm...
Nothing says Summer more than Bagoong Alamang and Hilaw na Mangga (green, unripe mangoes).